a bleeding purple utah jazz blog

Bits from Training Camp

TYRONE CORBIN**On different options on offense: If you go to [the same move] consistently, then [opponents] will make changes for it. So once they do that, you go to something else…So I think you need to have more than one dominant thing all the time to be able to go to. The more versatile you are and get good stuff out, the better chance you have to win.

**On training camp: It’s been some really good play to watch. They all have their moments. You know, Al [Jefferson] on the post scoring is probably the most pro-efficient guy, but the young guys are coming along. They’re getting better and they’re learning.

**On flopping: I remember my last few years in the league, I flopped and fell back into my leg and twisted my knee. Had to miss the Playoffs because of it.

**On Mo Williams: He’s a great communicator with the guys on the floor, in a good way.*

* As opposed to being a great communicator on the floor in a bad way.

**On Enes Kanter: I don’t think the weight loss hurt his, his, his big body and size. Some guys still falling off of him.

GORDON HAYWARD** We gotta shoot shots if we want to make them. So there were times [last season] when we didn’t really get up very many shots, and that’s difficult if you want to shoot a good percentage. So it’s good that we have these shooters; we’re gonna have to use them now.

ENES KANTER**On working out with Kiki Vandeweghe: I worked really hard with Kiki. You know, he showed me lots of tricks, you know, on the court, and like, what to do, a lot of footworks, and you know, Ty was so happy that I work with Kiki this summer.

**Personal goals for the season: My personal goal is first, just, you know, just help my teammates, you know, 100 percent. Put my effort 100 percent, just focus on every game, and just compete every nignt, you know, help my teammates, doesn’t matter like five minutes, ten minutes, twenty minutes, thirty. I just wanna go out there and just, you know, make the fans happy, make my teammates, make my coach happy.

**What were your summer workouts like? I worked out the same, like you know, I was working out before the summer. I just eat right. You know, I wasn’t eating like, 12,000-15,000 calorie a day. I was [only] eating, like, I just started eating 2,000-3,000 calorie a day. ‘Cause before, I was eating like 10,000-15,000 calorie a day. So yeah, it was bad.

DERRICK FAVORS**Do you feel settled in Utah now? Yeah, ’cause I know Imma be here, for the rest of the year. [Have you bought a house?] Not yet, but I got a feeling Imma be here for a while.

We can only hope. And pray.

AL JEFFERSON**On Enes: I stayed out there [at P3] the majority of the whole summer, he was kind of in L.A. doing his thing, but he always kept in touch with me and let me know he was working.

MARVIN WILLIAMS**Who came back to Utah early to work out with the guys? Big Ee-nis was here, Gordon, Alec [Burks], DeMarre [Carroll] came in a few times…Mo [Williams] was here, Randy Foye was here. So a few of us came back early and decided to get to work early.

**On expectations of him being the #2 pick: I think the question you have to ask is, whose expectations do I have to meet? I mean, that’s the million dollar question. You know, a lot of people feel like I have to meet their expectations, but no one had expectations for me before they even knew who I was. You know, I’ve been meeting my own expectations my whole life, and I’m going to continue to do that.

**On ping pong: There’s [a ping pong table] upstairs, actually. I haven’t seen anybody playing, so I’m kinda waiting to see who gonna jump out there first, and I’ll just bring my paddle out and see what I can do.

MO WILLIAMS **After leaving… I stayed in touch over the years, obviously Jerry [Sloan] was coaching at the time. Stayed in touch with them, always checked in on them. I got a lot of respect for this organization. I got a lot of respect for, obviously, Jerry and Phil [Johnson], Gordie [Chiesa]…those guys, I love dearly. They helped my career a lot. They got it jump-started. Without them, I wouldn’t be in the position I am today.

KEVIN MURPHY **On the birth of his first child: It was a good experience for me. It was a beautiful and ugly scene at the same time.**What happened: I was actually on the way to get the team donuts, and [my wife] called me and said her water just broke. “Can you come home now?” … [The flight] is four hours. I was praying that the baby didn’t come while I was on the flight and stuff. So yeah, it worked out pretty good.**Did you have time to look at game tape while you were in Atlanta? No, I was pretty busy. I ain’t slept in two days while I was down there, so I ain’t have time to do nothing but listen to my wife cry and my baby cry.**Kevin Murphy, Jr.: Soon as I found out it was a boy, it had to be a junior. My first one had to be. … They coming up in about three to four weeks, they’ll be up here.

Unintentional Dirty Quote Machines (UDQM)**Paul Millsap on leadership: As for a (w)hole, we looking for everybody to come together. Anybody got some input, put it in.

**Tyrone Corbin on Jamaal Tinsley’s leadership: I thought it was huge.

**Corbin on Tinsley again: See a veteran guy, just work and stay ready, and when his opportunity came, he was ready to perform.

**Corbin: We gonna make sure the guys are comfortable with things as we go forward, that the things we put in, they have a really good grasp of those things before we go to the next step.

**Al Jefferson: Guys still looking for that left hand to come out somewhere.

**Marvin Williams: I worked on my ball-handling a lot more this summer as opposed to past summers, and I definitely do feel more comfortable handling the ball. You know, I’ve never really been uncomfortable, but I do feel more comfortable handling the ball.

**Marvin Williams on ping pong: I have my paddle in my backpack. Don’t tell anybody though. I’ll bring it out when it’s time.

**Corbin: When I was younger, we just wanted to play games…2-on-2, 5-on-5, 4-on-4, whatever the game was.

**Corbin: We need to be ready to go, and we want to try and get up to full speed as soon as we can. Last year was just a crazy situation, where you only had nine days to get into it.

**Earl Watson on adjusting to SLC’s altitude: Nothing is like the first time.

**Watson: It’s gonna take some time for everything to come together, like anything good.

**Corbin on the third day of training camp: I anticipate having to work a little bit to get them going. But once they get the body loose, then it’ll pick up pretty fast.